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The Gambia

Country #43

Flat, quiet, sandy,

Calming but not exciting,

Unusual place.

I spent the Easter weekend of 2013 in The Gambia. It's hard to know how to describe the country, because on the one hand it is quite 'nice', and on the other hand there's something a bit unusual about it, even slightly 'eery', that I can't quite put my finger on. Anyway, it has stretches of nice empty beach that are pleasant though not nearly as beautiful as those in, say, Sierra Leone. The Gambia is incredibly flat as well.

I stayed in a really fantastic small hotel, in the Brufut area, which was peaceful and very welcoming. I enjoyed reading a book by the swimming pool, as well as heading out to the local area to see the beach, walk in the heat, and try out some decent restaurants.

I also went through the much busier Serrekunda, before reaching the small and very sleepy (on a Sunday at least) capital city of Banjul. There is some decent tourist infrastructure in The Gambia, but it's certainly not a very 'exciting' place to visit, in my view. But a pleasant place to spent a quiet long weekend.